Shipping attacked off Dover and south coast ports.

Night: Minelaying from Thames Estuary to Humber. Scattered raiders over England and Wales.

Weather: Fine early. Fair for the rest of the day, clouding over in the evening.

Enemy Action by Day

The day began fine and remained generally fair across southern England, though conditions deteriorated slightly by evening. Luftwaffe operations resumed with a renewed focus on coastal shipping targets and reconnaissance flights, culminating in a major air engagement off Dover in the afternoon. By nightfall, enemy aircraft returned for widespread minelaying and scattered bombing across much of the British mainland.

Early Morning: Coastal Shipping and First Losses

Before dawn, B Flight of No. 56 Squadron took off to protect a damaged destroyer being towed from North Foreland towards Chatham. The Hurricanes remained above the vessel throughout the morning, handing responsibility to their relief at approximately 13:30 hours as the destroyer approached safety.

During the early morning, a Heinkel He 115 of 3./Küstenfliegergruppe 506 attempted a torpedo attack against a convoy between Hartlepool and the Tyne. Ships’ anti-aircraft fire struck the aircraft, which is believed to have crashed in the Kattegat during its return flight, killing Leutnant Leo Ducoffre, Oberleutnant zur See Gerhard Ballier and Obergefreiter Fritz Fischer.

At approximately 05:30 hours, three Spitfires of No. 234 Squadron intercepted a Ju 88 of 5./LG 1 about thirty miles south-east of Plymouth. Flight Lieutenant P.C. “Pat” Hughes, Pilot Officer P.W. “Pat” Horton and Pilot Officer K. Dewhurst attacked the bomber, which crashed into the sea. Its pilot, Leutnant Karl Pfaff, and two members of his crew were killed, while the fourth airman was rescued from the water wounded.

At about the same time, another Ju 88, 9K+LH of 3./KG 51, force-landed at Buckholt Farm near Sidley, outside Bexhill. The aircraft had departed Melun-Villaroche to bomb Crewe, but its crew became lost and exhausted their fuel supply. Oberfeldwebel Josef Bier, Leutnant Willi Ruckdeschel, Unteroffizier Heinz Ohlf and Unteroffizier Martin Malthammer were captured unharmed after being found drinking tea in the farmhouse kitchen.

Remarkably, the bomber was recovered largely intact and later taken into RAF service for evaluation.

Around 06:30 hours, enemy aircraft appeared over Glasgow and dropped bombs on the Hillington district. A local printing works sustained serious damage; windows were shattered at the Rolls-Royce factory, and several minor civilian casualties were reported.

Late Morning: Probing Raids

Scattered raids continued through the morning but failed to inflict significant damage. At 06:40 hours, a formation departed Cherbourg toward Plymouth but was not intercepted. At 11:10 hours, three aircraft were tracked from Baie de la Seine toward Swanage, with sound plots recorded overland; they turned back without contact. Another group of three aircraft appeared north of Cherbourg at 12:37 hours and approached Bournemouth but again turned away.

A separate raid approached Portland before withdrawing without attacking.

12:04 Hours: Aborted Crossing

At 12:04 hours, RDF detected a substantial Luftwaffe formation gathering over Calais and Boulogne. The enemy circled the French coast, began a partial crossing toward Dover, but turned back halfway and dispersed without engagement. This was interpreted as a feint or aborted mission, possibly intended to test Fighter Command’s readiness.

13:35–15:30 Hours: Battle over Dover

At 13:35 hours, radar stations at Dover, Rye and Pevensey detected a large formation assembling near Calais and moving towards the English coast. Observer Corps reports estimated the approaching force at more than sixty Heinkel bombers and forty Messerschmitts, with Bf 109s of JG 51 and III./JG 26 providing the fighter escort. Spitfires of Nos. 41 and 74 Squadrons were scrambled, while the Hurricanes of Nos. 111 and 257 Squadrons were brought to readiness.

At approximately 14:00 hours, thirteen Spitfires of No. 74 Squadron, led by Flight Lieutenant Adolph “Sailor” Malan, intercepted the Bf 109 escort over Dover. Eleven Spitfires of No. 41 Squadron entered the battle shortly afterwards, and a confused series of dogfights developed above the coast and the eastern Channel.

Malan claimed one Bf 109 destroyed and another damaged, while Flight Lieutenant Piers Kelly, Flying Officer John Freeborn and Pilot Officers Peter Stevenson and Hugh Gunn each claimed a Messerschmitt destroyed. No. 41 Squadron added two further claims through Flight Lieutenant John Webster and Pilot Officer George Bennions. Together, the two squadrons claimed seven Bf 109s destroyed and eight damaged.

German records do not support the scale of the RAF claims. Gefreiter Martin Gebhardt of 2./JG 51 was killed when his Bf 109 failed to return, while two other fighters were damaged and force-landed in France. One of these was flown by Major Werner Mölders, the recently appointed Geschwaderkommodore of JG 51.

Mölders attacked a section of No. 41 Squadron and probably damaged the Spitfire flown by Flying Officer A.D.J. “Tony” Lovell, wounding Lovell in the thigh. Flight Lieutenant Webster then fired upon Mölders’ Bf 109, damaging its cooling system, wing and fuel tank. Mölders escaped across the Channel but suffered splinter wounds to his thigh, knee and foot before making a belly landing in France.

No. 74 Squadron suffered the only confirmed RAF aircraft loss during the main engagement. Pilot Officer J.H.R. Young was killed when Spitfire P9547 was shot down near the Goodwin Sands, while Sergeant E.A. Mould was wounded in Spitfire P9336. Spitfires R6706 and R6779, flown by Flying Officer Freeborn and Pilot Officer Stevenson respectively, returned damaged; Stevenson force-landed at Manston after his engine seized. Lovell also reached Manston in his damaged No. 41 Squadron Spitfire, P9429.

15:05 Hours: Rescue Aircraft off Boulogne

No. 111 Squadron reached the Dover area at approximately 15:05 hours, by which time the principal battle had ended, and its Hurricanes were ordered to patrol north-west of Boulogne. During the patrol, Pilot Officer Robert Wilson and Sergeant Jim Robinson encountered a Heinkel He 59 air-sea rescue aircraft accompanying a boat below. Robinson attacked the seaplane, which caught fire and crashed into the sea.

The aircraft was D-ASUC of Seenotflugkommando 3. Hauptgefreiter Richard Nüchter and Gefreiter Paul Berg were killed, while pilot Feldwebel Georg Niwiadomski, Leutnant Helmut Sandgaard and Obergefreiter Ludwig Fengel were rescued wounded.

A second He 59 of Seenotflugkommando 1 arrived to assist the survivors but was attacked by Flying Officer Henry Ferriss and Pilot Officer Basil Fisher. The seaplane was severely damaged but escaped, with its pilot, Leutnant Gerhard Kahl, and observer, Leutnant Hermann Wählke, both wounded.

15:52–19:48 Hours: Further Raids and Reconnaissance

At 15:52 hours, a separate raid was tracked from 40 miles south of Dungeness toward Selsey Bill, fading by 16:30 hours over Le Havre. At 17:08 hours, two raids—nine or more aircraft—approached Swanage from Portland but withdrew under RAF pressure. Another Portsmouth-area raid dispersed without action. At 17:35 hours, a convoy off Milford Haven sent a distress call, prompting a fighter scramble, but no contact was made.

Reconnaissance flights were frequent. At 14:24 hours, a probable meteorological flight was plotted 60 miles east of Haisborough. At 15:03 hours, another enemy aircraft was sighted 18 miles east of Bawdsey before fading over Foreness. A separate raid at 16:00 hours—possibly targeting a Royal Navy unit—was plotted 50 miles east of Mablethorpe before circling off Cromer. A “help” signal was received from the vessel under attack.

At 18:40 hours, Hurricane P3622 of No. 257 Squadron was shot down south of Maidstone. Sergeant R.V. Forward survived with slight injuries.

At 18:53 hours, a reconnaissance group of three or more aircraft was tracked from Dunkirk to 15 miles east of Lowestoft before turning south under pursuit. The formation returned via Gris Nez and appeared to land at St. Inglevert. At 19:48 hours, seven raids again formed near Gris Nez, including one of 40 aircraft at 30,000 ft. Six RAF squadrons were dispatched, but the raid dispersed before reaching Britain.

Elsewhere, the Royal Navy armed trawler Staunton struck a mine in the Thames Estuary off Bradwell and sank with the loss of all thirteen members of her crew.

Enemy Action by Night

Night operations saw widespread activity. The main effort was intensive minelaying from the Thames Estuary to the Humber, extending as far north as Aberdeen. Inland bombing occurred across much of England, Scotland, and Wales. By 01:30 hours, most raids had begun to withdraw; by 02:45 hours, the country’s interior was largely clear.

Bombs were reported at Edinburgh, Perth, Rochford, Tyne, Thames Estuary, Crewe, Newcastle, Alnwick, Hungerford, Staplehurst, Long Eaton, Holywell (Flintshire), Sealand, Edenbridge, Brixham, Shaftesbury, Lydd, Colchester, Lichfield, Derby, Salford, and Swansea. A searchlight post at Staplehurst was destroyed. At 02:00 hours, a German aircraft crashed at Wooton Hill, southwest of Newbury; the crew bailed out and evaded immediate capture.

At 23:30 hours, He 111s of III./KG 55 attacked the Rolls-Royce facility in Crewe. Bombs also fell on Kent and Sussex, causing light housing and utility damage near Edenbridge. Sealand Aerodrome was bombed at 02:30 hours. In South Wales, infrastructure near Neath and Pontaliw was damaged, including disruption to rail and road links.

Ju 88s of 9./KG 4 undertook minelaying sorties in the Thames Estuary, where anti-aircraft fire damaged two aircraft. Ju 88 5J+DT crashed at Théville during its return, killing pilot Unteroffizier Detlef Dormann and injuring the other three members of the crew. The second Ju 88 crash-landed at its base, injuring all four airmen aboard.

A Dornier Do 17 of 4./KG 2 was also badly damaged by anti-aircraft fire over London but returned without casualties.

German Losses:
Airmen: 14 | Aircraft: 11

British Losses:
Airmen: 1 | Aircraft: 6

Spitfire P9547, No. 74 Squadron. Aircraft lost.
P/O J.H.R.Young killed. Shot down by Bf 109 near Goodwin Sands.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/YoungJHR.htm

Photo Descriptions

1. Acting F/L Adolph G “Sailor” Malan of No. 74 Squadron RAF poses besides Spitfire Mk I ZP-A at RAF Hornchurch. On 28 July 1940, Malan found himself in combat with Major Werner Mölders of JG 51 over Dover. Mölders was wounded and crash-landed in France.
2. Major Werner Mölders climbing into his Messerschmitt Bf 109.
3. Spitfire Mk I EB-O is inspected at RAF Manston, after F/O Anthony DJ “Tony” Lovell of No. 41 Squadron crashed the aircraft on landing on 28 July 1940.
4. Bristol Blenheim Mk IVs of No. 40 Squadron at Wyton, July 1940.